Tag Archives: Raytheon Missiles & Defense

Excalibur projectile

January 20, 2022 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, in partnership with the U.S. Army and French company Nexter successfully fired Excalibur artillery projectiles from a CAESAR self-propelled howitzer. The test proved compatibility between Excalibur, the U.S. Army’s Modular Artillery Charge System (MACS) and CAESAR.

Raytheon Missiles & Defense’s Excalibur artillery projectile fired at record range from CAESAR howitzer

During the demonstration the CAESAR-fired Excalibur directly struck two targets at a distance of more than 46 kilometers/28.6 miles, a record setting range from the gun system.

«Integration with CAESAR now adds a level of mobility to the long-range and proven precision of Excalibur, providing the U.S. Army and partner nations more flexibility for this advanced, versatile weapons system for contested environments», said Sam Deneke, vice president of execution for Land Warfare & Air Defense at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «This success highlights the interoperability of a French howitzer with a U.S. munition and offers our customers more options to deploy Excalibur artillery from a range of platforms».

Building on previous compatibility tests, this demonstration marked an important milestone toward operational capability for Excalibur’s integration with CAESAR.

«Chosen by eight partner nations, CAESAR is arguably the most successful truck mounted artillery system available today», said Thierry Soulat, program manager at Nexter. «This demonstration with Excalibur underscores CAESAR’s compatibility with NATO standards for both conventional and smart ammunition».

The Excalibur projectile is a true precision weapon, impacting at a radial miss distance of less than two meters from the target, providing accurate first-round effects at all ranges in all weather conditions. With its GPS-guided capabilities and multiple fuze modes, it is already a premiere artillery option for multiple countries using the M777, M109 series, M198, the Archer, the PzH2000, and the SIAC systems. Initial assessments indicate likely compatibility with the AS90, K9 and G6 howitzers.

Raytheon’s Excalibur artillery projectile fired at record range from CAESAR howitzer

Missile Defense, Navy, Radars

Aegis Combat System

December 24, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense’s SPY-6 Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) attained another milestone when the future USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG-125) achieved «light off» on its Aegis Combat System, marking the beginning of on-board system testing and crew training for the ship.

«This important milestone kicks off onboard testing and training with naval crews on the SPY-6 radars», said Kim Ernzen, vice president of Naval Power at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «SPY-6 is the world’s most advanced surface maritime radar, and our team is ready to provide training and support to the Navy through this phase and beyond».

The AN/SPY-6(V) Family of Radars is the newest radar system for the U.S. Navy, performing air and missile defense on seven classes of ships. The SPY-6 family can defend against ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, hostile aircraft and surface ships simultaneously. When compared to legacy radars, SPY-6 will bring new capabilities to the surface fleet, such as advanced electronic warfare protection and enhanced detection abilities.

SPY-6 is scalable and modular to support production for the U.S. and partner nations across all variants. This commonality supports standardized logistics and training for those who work on the radars.

Navy

SPY-6(V)3 radar

November 10, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, in partnership with the Office of Naval Research, completed successful demonstrations of the Network Cooperative Radar (NCR) program, an advanced radar system solution that supports the U.S. Navy’s goal of creating distributed sensing networks to defend against evolving threats. NCR supports the Navy’s Distributed Maritime Operations concept by giving electromagnetic maneuver warfare capabilities to the fleet.

During the demonstration, two surface-based radar emulators detected targets using distributed sensing capabilities. The demonstration proved that tactical radars, like SPY-6, will benefit from advanced distributed radar concepts developed in the NCR program.

«SPY-6 will provide an unprecedented level of protection to naval forces, and software updates like this demonstrate that it’s only getting better», said Rear Adm. Seiko Okano, program executive officer for the U.S. Navy’s Integrated Warfare Systems. «Programs like NCR ensure SPY-6 will be the backbone of our distributed sensing capabilities in the future».

Cooperative radars collaborate using distributed sensing capabilities to create a fuller picture of objects in a given coverage area. NCR-enabled sensors work together to identify and track threats, communicating real-time information to improve system performance and mission success.

«NCR furthers the development of our next-generation software-defined apertures», said Colin Whelan, vice president of Advanced Technology at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «The continued development of capabilities demonstrated by NCR will ensure SPY-6 remains the most advanced naval radar in the world».

Missiles & Guided Weapons, Navy

Tomahawk Block Va

November 7, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, was awarded a $20 million contract for low-rate production of the Maritime Strike Tomahawk cruise missile Block Va, which includes navigation and communication upgrades in addition to an advanced multi-mode seeker for engaging moving targets at sea.

Tomahawk Block Va — U.S. Navy awards Raytheon Missiles & Defense $20 million contract for Maritime Strike Tomahawk

«This award is a significant and essential step toward addressing the U.S. Navy’s need to counter moving targets at sea», said Kim Ernzen, vice president of Naval Power at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «Maritime Strike Tomahawk Block Va production ensures our Sailors have the most advanced long-range, first-strike weapons available to defeat advancing threats».

Tomahawk Block V series:

Block V: A modernized TACTOM with upgraded navigation and communication;
Block Va: Block V that can strike moving targets at sea;
Block Vb: Block V, with a joint multi-effects warhead that can hit more diverse land targets.

The Tomahawk cruise missile is a precision weapon that launches from ships and submarines and can strike targets precisely from 1,000 miles/1,609 km away, even in heavily defended airspace. U.S. and allied militaries have flight-tested the GPS-enabled Tomahawk 550 times and used it in combat more than 2,300 times. Its most recent use came in 2018, when U.S. Navy warships and submarines launched 66 Tomahawk missiles at Syrian chemical weapon facilities.

Missile Defense, Radars

Radar for NASAMS

October 15, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, introduces GhostEye MR, a new medium-range radar for the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS. GhostEye MR is on display at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual meeting and exhibition, in booth #2147 of NASAMS partner Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.

The increased range and altitude coverage provided by GhostEye MR expands NASAMS capability to detect, track and identify enemy aircraft, unmanned aircraft systems, and cruise missile threats. The extended range of this new sensor also maximizes the capabilities of the family of effectors employed by NASAMS.

GhostEye MR is a variant of the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) that the company is building for the U.S. Army. It is a scalable Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar providing 360-degree surveillance and advanced fire control capabilities. Raytheon’s name for the family of radars based on LTAMDS is GhostEye. GhostEye MR is a separate, but concurrent, radar development program funded by Raytheon Missiles & Defense that leverages LTAMDS technology baseline and common manufacturing processes.

«GhostEye MR makes NASAMS even more capable for our current and future customers around the globe», said Tom Laliberty, vice president of Land Warfare & Air Defense, a Raytheon Missiles & Defense business area. «We’re leveraging the best of our technology development from the U.S. Army’s most advanced radar to give the U.S. and our allies a robust sensor that can defend against a wide range of threats».

Building on the progress of the LTAMDS program, GhostEye MR is on an accelerated path to availability. The sensor’s capabilities and performance were tested through a series of modeling and simulation-based threat scenarios. The radar will undergo open air testing in 2022, followed by customer demonstrations.

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, in partnership with Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace, produces and supports NASAMS. The system has been chosen by 12 countries for their air defense needs and has been integrated into the U.S. National Capital Region’s air defense system since 2005. In addition to the U.S., Norway, Finland, Spain, The Netherlands, Oman, Lithuania, Indonesia, Australia, Qatar, Hungary and one undisclosed country have selected NASAMS for defense of their homeland and critical assets.

Raytheon’s GhostEye MR is the latest program in the company’s vast portfolio of sophisticated radar systems, extending a legacy of technological innovation and manufacturing expertise that spans decades. The GhostEye family of radars will enhance the capabilities of U.S. and allies to defend against short, medium, and long-range threats.

Air, Unmanned Systems

Air Launched Effects

September 8, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, successfully conducted its first flight test of an Air-Launched Effects (ALE) drone based on the company’s Coyote uncrewed aircraft system design. The ALE air vehicle design meets the U.S. Army’s defined specifications for size, weight and power requirements for the Future Vertical Lift program.

For the test, the team demonstrated a launch of an ALE configuration intended for the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter. The ALE air vehicle was ground launched from the canister, spread its wings, and accomplished stable flight. All test objectives were achieved, including low-altitude launch, wing and flight surface deployment, and stable air vehicle flight control.

«Leveraging the maturity of the Coyote design, we are well-positioned to offer the Army a reliable, sustainable and cost-effective air-launched effects air vehicle», said Tom Laliberty, vice president of Land Warfare & Air Defense at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «Our solution’s modular open systems architecture design means it can rapidly integrate new technologies to take on advanced threats and protect aircrews in future high-end fights».

The launch was the first in a series of increasingly complex, near-term flight tests that will advance the ALE air vehicle’s design, including payload integration, and further demonstrate its performance and maturity.

Raytheon Missiles & Defense is one of three companies awarded Other Transaction Authority contracts in August 2020 to produce ALE air vehicle designs. Raytheon Technologies businesses were also chosen for projects aimed at developing ALE mission systems and payloads.

Navy

EASR radars

August 9, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

The U.S. Navy and Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, completed a series of tests on the Enterprise Air Surveillance Radar (EASR) at the Navy’s Wallops Island Test Facility in Virginia. The tests validated the performance of EASR’s two variants: the SPY-6(V)2 rotating and SPY-6(V)3 fixed-face radars.

AN/SPY-6(V)2 — SPY-6 radar under test at Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia

The two EASR radars are the newest sensors in the SPY-6 family. SPY-6(V)2 and SPY-6(V)3 provide simultaneous anti-air and anti-surface warfare capabilities, including detecting and tracking uncrewed aerial vehicles, electronic protection, and air traffic control for aircraft carriers and amphibious warfare ships.

«EASR development is progressing rapidly because our engineers are applying knowledge they’ve gained from the SPY-6 family», said Kim Ernzen, vice president of Naval Power at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «SPY-6’s common architecture saves time and money, and it streamlines training and logistics across software and hardware systems».

The recent tests concentrated on anti-air warfare, air traffic control operations and power system modeling for SPY-6(V)2 and SPY-6(V)3 radars. EASR will replace single-function legacy radars, improving range and performance.

«EASR has proven it performs in high-clutter and dense tracking environments», said Captain Jason Hall, Above-Water Sensors program manager at the Navy’s Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems. «Teams continue to improve and enhance the system, and will integrate the radar with the combat management system using land-based testing».

The AN/SPY-6(V)2 will be installed on amphibious assault ships and Nimitz class carriers. The AN/SPY-6(V)3 will be incorporated on Ford class aircraft carriers and is compatible with frigates for international navies. AN/SPY-6(V)3 will be a centerpiece of the U.S. Navy’s new Constellation class frigates (FFG 62).

Raytheon Missiles & Defense and the U.S. Navy completed engineering and manufacturing developmental testing for EASR in March 2020. In July 2020, the Navy awarded the company a $126 million contract to produce four SPY-6(V)2 rotators and two SPY-6(V)3 fixed-faced radars.

Air, Unmanned Systems

Non-kinetic effector

July 25, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, successfully defeated a swarm of drones with its reusable Coyote Block 3 non-kinetic effector during a U.S. Army test. The demonstration moves the variant closer to deployment.

Coyote UAS — Non-kinetic Coyote aces US Army test

Derived from the expendable Coyote loitering munition, the Block 3 utilizes a non-kinetic warhead to neutralize enemy drones, reducing potential collateral damage. Unlike its expendable counterpart, the non-kinetic variant can be recovered, refurbished and reused without leaving the battlefield.

«This test demonstrates the effectiveness of Coyote to counter complex, unmanned aircraft systems», said Tom Laliberty, vice president of Land Warfare & Air Defense at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «As a non-kinetic variant, we’re offering an effective weapon against the threat and value to the Army in the form of an affordable, reusable asset».

During the test, the Coyote engaged and defeated a swarm of 10 drones that differed in size, complexity, maneuverability and range. It achieved several significant firsts:

Air-to-air non-kinetic defeats;
Survivability, recovery, refurbishment and reuse during the same test event;
Successful launch from the Coyote Block 2 system;
Extended range engagements, communication and Ku-band Radio Frequency System (KuRFS) radar track.

Missiles & Guided Weapons, Rocket

Multipurpose Munition

June 5, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, and Saab, proved the versatility and performance of the Guided Multipurpose Munition (GMM), which was fired from multiple launchers during a U.S. Army demonstration.

Guided Multipurpose Munition (GMM) — Disposable launcher and Carl-Gustaf recoilless rifle score direct hits

The GMM System Capability Demonstration, a joint activity between Saab and Raytheon Missiles & Defense, was funded by the U.S. Army under a U.S. Government Rapid Innovation Funding (RIF) effort aimed at supporting the development of promising technologies that address military capability to meet operational needs. This was a three-year contract that culminated in a live-fire demonstration in November 2020.

«The GMM’s effectiveness and flexibility to fire from multiple launchers provides soldiers an advantage in accuracy and lethality in multi-domain operations», said Tom Laliberty, vice president of Land Warfare & Air Defense, a Raytheon Missiles & Defense business. «We’re closer to delivering this much-needed weapon to ground forces around the globe».

From an enclosure, the GMM, formerly known as the Guided Carl-Gustaf Munition, was fired from both an AT4-derived disposable launcher and the Saab-built Carl-Gustaf recoilless rifle, defeating different targets at distances from 1,550 to 2,500 meters/5,085 to 8,202 feet. The live-fire exercise demonstrated the munition’s fully integrated warhead and fuze against multiple targets, as well as its extended range precision and effectiveness from multiple launchers. The targets were triple brick wall, double-reinforced concrete wall, and up-armored vehicle.

«The GMM marks the next step in the evolution of our shoulder-launched systems. It is the most advanced munition yet and will offer greater precision, outstanding performance with pin-point accuracy, and multi-target capability», says Görgen Johansson, head of Saab’s Dynamics business area.

The GMM is the first precision-guided munition for Saab’s Carl-Gustaf recoilless rifle, which is fielded in the U.S. and around the world. With the disposable launcher, which is a portable, single-use system, the GMM provides a valuable capability to squad and platoon level troops.

During a U.S. Army demonstration, Raytheon Missiles & Defense and Saab proved the versatility and performance of the Guided Multipurpose Munition, which was fired from multiple launchers

Missiles & Guided Weapons, Rocket

Ship Interdiction System

May 2, 2021 Dmitry Shulgin

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, and the U.S. Marine Corps successfully demonstrated the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System, or NMESIS, off the California coast. The inaugural test proved the system’s ability to fire a Naval Strike Missile, or NSM, from a U.S. Marine Corps ground launcher and score a direct hit against a surface target at sea.

NMESIS — Naval Strike Missile is a multi-mission cruise missile designed to destroy heavily defended maritime and land targets (Photo credit: U.S. Navy)

NSM is a multi-mission cruise missile designed to destroy heavily defended maritime and land targets; it is the U.S. Navy’s over-the-horizon weapon system for littoral combat ships and future frigates.

«Our Naval Strike Missile is a vital weapon for denying enemies the use of key maritime terrain», said Kim Ernzen, vice president of Naval Power at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. «This test further demonstrates our partnership for advancing the Marine Corps’ modernization priorities of enabling sea control and denial operations».

The Marines will use NMESIS to support the U.S. Navy from the shore against enemy ships. NMESIS is comprised of the Raytheon Missiles & Defense-made NSM and a Remotely Operated Ground Unit for Expeditionary (ROGUE) Fires vehicle, produced by Oshkosh Defense.

NSM is the latest product from a partnership Raytheon Missiles & Defense has with Norway and its defense leader Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. The companies have teamed to bring more than half of NSM production to the U.S. The missile is already in service with Norway’s navy and Poland’s coastal defense squadrons.

Modern weapons